Vivid Dreams
by DustedWithStars
Summary: "I love you! You're so freaking awesome!" And with that, Henry joined the already dysfunctional Shepherd family. This is their life now. Which is to say, chaos. Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1- Days With You

_Just gotta warn you guys- my first ever fanfic about the ever lovable Henry. Seriously, who doesn't love this guy? He's hilarious and creepy, and he kicks some serious undead Risen ass. Okay fine, I love the other Shepherds too. So this isn't just about Henry. It's about EVERYONE! YAY!_

_ Side notes: I do not own Fire Emblem, pairings will come as I want them to, Robin is renamed to Lacie and there will be lots of teenage angst. _

Chapter One ~Days With You

"Get the hell away from me!"

"Nya ha ha! Come, fly, my pretties!"

Sully glared at Henry, inching backwards slowly, threateningly drawing her silver lance.

"Henry, I said: get tha hell away from me."

Chrom was worried, as he and his grinning Grand Master watched Henry bombard Sully with dead crows. The corpses were rotting, flesh torn off, bones peeking through, feathers matted and greasy with guts barely held back from spilling onto Sully's spiky, fiery hair. Nearby bystanders decided to run away to the dining tent. This would get messy.

"Teach is here to hel- on second thought, Kjelle go save ya mom!" Vaike scrambled backwards, knodding to Kjelle who had just appeared out of her tent looking immaculate and fresh, as she rolled her eyes and strode across the lawn. Her purple armor clanked, and she leaned over to take her dad's axe.

"What the- that's Teach's axe!"

"Weapons should not be placed in the hands of corwardly, unworthy warriors," she snapped.

"Flame!" Lacie whooped. "Henry, didn't she just flame him?"

Henry cackled, an open purple tome in hand glowing a sick, unearthly light that made him looked paler than usual. "I sure would say it burned!"

"Ooooh!"

Chrom groaned as a bird swooped down and dropped a pale, withered looking pile of white on Kjelle's gleaming blond hair. She shrieked and started doing a frantic jig to get rid of it, dropping the axe in the progress.

Lacie and Henry laughed, and even Vaike cracked a grin, only to be silenced by Sully's ferocious look. "Enough! Henry call off your birds before I rip out your eyes shove them so far up your ass you'll only be able to see the inside of that messed up head of yours. Don't ever drop fossilized bird poop on my kid again!" Her knuckles were white as they gripped the spear shaft. She was about to stick it down his fugly throat.

Henry pouted. "But I don't wantttt to. Besides, I'll do you a favor and poke my eyes out later. I want ta restuff them in backwards."

Chrom rubbed his eyes. He never got a moment of peace with all the lunatics running around in his army. Lacie, his amnesiac, Plegain best friend, wasn't any better. Sure, the short, frail looking tactician could be intelligent and serious when it counted, and showed remarkable skill on the battlefield, but when she wasn't being an excellent stradegist, she was just another kid who ran around with Donny, Lissa, Nowi, Riken and Henry to stir up trouble.

He glanced at Lacie, who was jumping up and down on the balls of her feet. She returned the look, and understood immediately what he wanted. She sighed, and ran over to meet Henry on the soggy grass field.

"Hey, Henry, I need your help organizing my library books. I need to keep them catagorized, and they're all over the place."

Henry immediately closed his tome so that dead birds fell across the field, landing with wet squelches and kicking up mud. One landed on Vaike, who shrieked like a little girl, and Sully kicked one contempously, still wanting to kill Henry, while helping a whimpering Kjelle to the bathing tent.

Henry grinned wider. "Of course! Nya ha ha!"

For some reason he actually liked Lacie, with her messy dark pigtails tied with worn blue ribbons and the way she sometimes wore big glasses that constantly threatened to slip off her nose.

"Let's goooo!" She screamed, and they tore across camp to reach her tent. "Plegian Attack Guard!"

Chrom blinked in confusion. If Frederick the Wary ever heard that, he would throw a fit and start ranting about spies again. He turned to see Vaike, standing proudly, a bird corpse having just been crushed under his boot, surveying the camp like he was the king over all these puny subjects who always bow down to him. It didn't even take a genius like Lacie to know that was what he was actually thinking at that moment.

"Just why?" Chrom murmured, coming to stand besides him. Everybody was probably awake by now, packed into the dining tent, enjoying a warm breakfast meal. His stomach growled and rebeled at the thought of warm food. Mist curled along the ground, hiding tufts of soggy grass, and the sky was a watery gray color.

"Don't know. But hey, it was fun while it lasted. Did you see Sully's face?" Vaike snickered.

"You were the one who was shrieking just a little while ago like a baby," Chrom reminded him.

Vaike blushed. "Ain't no way Teach would do something like that. You must have mistaken it with Kjelle's."

"Mm-hmm." As if Kjelle would ever be caught like that. As if Sully would let her.

"It's true!"

This morning's troubles combined with the constant battles and the recent all nighters spent planning with Lacie left him too drained, especially to argue with Vaike. It begged the question of how Lacie managed to retain so much energy each day.

His hair was messy, his cape sloppily tied around him, and his eleaborate patterned silver shoulder guard was in danger is slipping off. Dark bruises were under his eyes, from all those said late night planning sessions and sleepless nights tossing and turning as one question burned his mind: Who would die tomorrow?

As Vaike chattered about his awesomeness and Chrom became drowned in his deep thoughts, Lacie sat surrounded around a enormous moutain of books, flipping idly through a green one embossed with gold.

Henry hummed as he helped stacked them into piles, looking carefully at each one and organizing them accordingly.

"Can you help me sort the inventory later?" Lacie asked absently, setting down the green book besides her.

"Of corpse!" He cackled.

Lacie picked up several assorted history and fantasty novels, and they coutinued on in peaceful silence.

Henry suddenly looked up sharply, as there was a hardly notiacble ripple in the room, the softest sigh of dark magic being cast. It was althogether too easy to deflect it, as if the attacker wasn't even trying.

Lacie paused at his sudden immobility, removing Thoron from beneath her purple coat.

And then, a shadowy blur appeared in the room, entering in a swirl of black clothing and tan tent flaps.

Lacie had opened Thoron when- "Tharja?"

The Sorceress hissed, drawing her cape around her. Henry had noticed her curse, which was irritating beyond measure, as she had been hoping to cause some of those thin fingers of his to slowly rotten, curl-up shrivel into decaying clumps.

But the thing that most bothered her was the face that he was in Lacie's tent, defiling it with his presence. She didn't trust him, alone, with her precious, adorable tactian. Who knew what could have been running through that mind of his, if he even had any thoughts up there.

"Lookie there!" Henry laughed. "It's a Tharja!"

"Shut up, you disease addled mongrel," she muttered. "I just don't trust you alone with my sweet Lacie."

"Excuse me, but when did our relationship develop far enough for you to call me by pet names and use possessive pronouns?" Lacie interjected.

Tharja practically radiated pleasure at Lacie's sense of humor but didn't allow herself to smile. It might make her feel uncomfortable.

"If you don't like it, I'll stop," Tharja offered.

"That was sarcasm, Tharja. I just want you to do stuff that makes you happy."

Aw, there was that hideously sweet side of her.

"That's a dangerous thing to say."

"It's almost as if she wants her stalker around!"

"Aw yeah, there goes the neighboring sadistic pyschopath!"

Henry and Lacie high fived.

Tharja promptly scowled and plonked herself down, reaching for a seemingly untamed section of Lacie's books. Her expression screamed, "I'm not leaving. I'm helping. Henry, I will kill you in you sleep."

Lacie and Henry looked at each other, shrugged and got back to work. It almost felt like a companionable silence, excluding the fact Tharja tried to curse Henry several times.

"Good work guys," Lacie said, once everything had been sorted into neat piles and arranged from bottom to top by topic, genre and author. "I still need help on the inventory."

When the group of Plegians walked outside, a drizzle had started, large, gentle drops that felt like kisses from the sky more than anything. They all chose to ignore the dead birds still strewn around.

"We'll still need to move out tonight," Lacie mumbled under her breath. "But if it gets worse, we'll have to stay, and that could cause all sorta of problems with timing and getting to the neighboring town. But the horse riding units, carts and Pegasi might be in trouble if we do try if it gets heavier."

Shaking her head, Lacie plastered a bright grin on her face. "All right Plegians, let's move out! Because we are the Plegian Attack Guard, superheroes of the realm!"

"Wheee! We're gonna kill everyone!" Henry squealed happily as the two ran across the muddy lawn, and stumbled to a stop in front of the inventory. Tharja followed, grumbling.

The inventory was a tent full of every weapons, miscellaneous objects and tomes they had ever bought, found and scavenged from enemies, some old and cracked, others gleaming and new, but all cluttered, crammed and tossed into here with no avail.

"All right, we need to sell iron and steel weapons, but save a few for Laurent, and if the tomes are not better than at least an Elwind, out they go. Bullions and some Second Seals are also sellable. No one needs a class change right now. Let's go, Plegain Attack Guard!"

It took them a total of an hour and twenty two minutes to sort everything out, put them in the right place and take out the useless and old items, which were placed in a cart and would be sold when they reached town.

"Good work, crew!" Lacie announced. "But that's we have time for today. Lunch should be starting soon."

"Nya ha ha! We might just have an un_bear_able _meat_ing with Sully and Kjelle!"

"Whoop, whoop! Those puns, though!" Lacie yelled. "Hey Tharja, what do you want to do?" She turned, only to see that Tharja had mysteriously disappeared, either to stalk her in private or devise a curse that would actually hurt Henry.

"Eh, she's gone," Henry said, shrugging indifferently. "So ya want to sit with me and Olivia?"

"Huh? Why are you and Olivia eating together?" Lacie felt a strange, uncomfortable sensation at the idea of Henry and Olivia sitting together. It didn't help that last week, during a late night stradegy session, Sumia had baked them her famous rhubarb pie, giggling to Chrom that Henry and Olivia were so cute together, and did you know that they were hanging out more? Who do you think will propose first?

She forced the tight, itchy feeling away, not particularly liking the way it made her feel about her friends. When she glanced down, she saw a dead crow and nudged it away from her.

"Well, Olivia thinks that I'm hiding my true self because of my bad childhood, and since she's worked in theater and knew this sort of stuff, she's trying to help unlock it."

"Oh." She would never admit it, but sometimes she felt that way too. It was his constant smile, and his love of each battle and blood that was shed, not that that wasn't awesome. Not to mention the rumors of his childhood, which Henry had never talked to her about. It bothered her a little, that maybe he didn't trust her to be serious or care about that part of his life.

Wait- why was she even thinking like that? Weird. Henry would tell her whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to.

"It's sort of silly," Henry confided. "But if it makes her feel better, she can do whatever she wants to!"

"I wouldn't say it's silly," Lacie said. "She just wants to help you in a way she thought you need to be."

An awkward silence descended upon them. Henry had expected her to laugh and brush it off, and they would joke all the way through lunch together. Lacie knew he expected her to be silly, but couldn't she also be serious about him?

And there were those weird thoughts again! Why had they started bothering her when he was around?

"It's okay," Lacie said, finally. "I'll sit with Lissa."

She turned, but called teasingly over her shoulder, "Remember to avoid that un_bear_able _meat_ing with Sully and Kjelle!"

In response, she heard his trademark, "Nya ha ha!"

"You're wet!" Lissa exclaimed in surprise at her friend as she pushed her way into the warm dining tent.

Lacie hadn't noticed, but Lissa was right. She shrugged off her heavy, wet purple cloak to reveal her thin, small shoulders.

"But it was fun to splash around in the rain," Lacie said happily.

Lissa shook her head, and nudged her with her shoulders. "Let me join you next time!"

"Sure," Lacie said, grabbing a plate of food. They were serving bear meat, something she found hilarious, much to Lissa's mystification.

Across the room, while waiting for Olivia to finish her long, daily dance practice, Henry looked at Lacie and felt a weird flutter in his chest- like he had swallowed all of his crows friends live, and they were beating and flapping against his rib cage, making him feel tickle-ly and warm.

Huh. Maybe Thaja had finally found a way to curse him.

_It was sort of long, but I still really like it and enjoyed writing it. And ooooo, Lacie and Henry are experiencing hormones._


	2. Chapter 2-Winter Nights, Smoky Skies

_Henry is like bae. *Crosses arms like a bad ass*. Anyways, I want to build more onto this world. It feels incomplete, somehow. Also, I had to revise a major chunk of this chapter because it really irked me. I think I love Henry too much. But who cares! Nothing is ever too with Henry!_

Chapter 2~ Winter Nights, Smoky Skies

Henry still felt weird whenever he saw Lacie. It was strange: the feeling was warm and bubbly, making him feel like he could fly. He wondered if he actually could. He also kept searching for her, waiting for when he could talk to her next, though he wasn't sure how it related to flying. In fact, he had jumped off a nearby cliff to test this theory, resulting in mass panic among the Shepherds as Cordelia rushed in to save him.

"What were you thinking?" She screamed, catching him around the waist in a complicated maneuver so fast he felt dizzy. The sudden, nauseating jolt that made him feel as if he was being severed in half, combined with the cold metal of her armored arm pressed into his stomach, left him breathless for a few moments.

"I wanted to see if I could fly," he explained.

Cordeila groaned. She still hadn't let him out of her sight ever since.

They were currently marching to Regna Ferox, in an effort to ask for their help against Walhart. Currently, they were stopped in a nearby town, and Shepherds were scattered everywhere. Some were hanging out in the local pub, where loud, raucous laughter and the occasional drunk man spilled out into the cold air. Others were shopping for weapons or clothes, eating a warm meal, or just sleeping in the small, ramshackle inn.

Houses were blanketed in what looked like a thin layer of glass, with people tucked cozily inside. The grass and paved stones were frosty and slick, the trees covered by magical spiderwebs illuminated by torches, gleaming in the thickly scattered starry night. Henry wondered if real magical giant spiders had made them. That would be awesome.

Then, a shrill shriek split through the night.

He whipped around. He had been standing in the shadows of the forest, after Cordeila had berated him not to jump off cliffs again, coaxing his crows to follow him to the cold winter that was Regna Ferox. They had just reluctantly agreed.

Darting closer, he saw Olivia, trembling, as several red faced men accosted her near the outskirts of the town. Her pink hair was messy and she was shakily moving backwards, as they cajoled her to join them.

He quickly rushed over, jumping in front of her, landing quite coolly, if he did so say himself. Nosferatu was open in one hand, releasing an eerie purple light. Looking at it reminded him of all the beautiful blood he had ever spilled. Giggling, he said, "I'm going to kill you now!"

The men glanced warily at the tome in his hand. Whispers broke out amongst them, but one with a face redder than Olivia being caught dancing swaggered forward, off balanced.

"Are you scared of a dumb book?" He asked, words slurred. He swiped one hand near Henry's left, then laughed. "See? Took 'im down with one blow. What's he gonna do?"

The other men glanced at each other. "Hugh, you never hit him," one brave volunteer said, who had excessive baby fat and thick eyelashes framing a gentle green.

"Shaddup!" Hugh mumbled. "I did! Now whazza gonna do? Kill me with knowledge?"

He laughed loudly for a long time, but then realized no else was. "Guyz! You're suppose ta laugh."

"Hugh, you're dead drunk," the brave volunteer tried again. "I think we should go now." He looked uncomfortable, seemingly roused from his previously boisterous mood.

"I am not Paul. Yo-"

Sadly, no one would ever learn what Hugh was going to say.

"PLEGIAN ATTACK GUARD!" Lacie screamed, tripping Hugh with one leg and then swiftly hitting him on the head with the butt of her sword. She then let him fall to the ground with a thunk, glancing up proudly at her friends.

No one said anything for several seconds.

"Crap. I came in at the wrong time again, didn't I?" Lacie finally mumbled.

"Nope, that was perfect!" Henry said cheerfully. They high fived. "Now, maybe we should attack the rest of the crew."

He turned his creepy smile on to the other men who shuffled uncomfortably. Paul held up his hands. "Whoa, we're sorry we bothered your girlfriend here, okay? We won't do it again. We were just playing around."

Lacie's sheepish grin dropped from her face. "Are you for real? You deliberately bothered an innocent girl who was clearly uncomfortable with your advances!"

She hugged Olivia around the waist, while glaring at the men.

"L-Lacie," Olivia murmured, face pink. "I-it's all right now."

"No, it's not. Henry, get ready... PLEGIAN ATTACK GUARD!"

"Special delivery!" He yelled gleefully, aiming Nosferatu at the men. They all screamed, scrambling away from the pool of dark magic, while Lacie took out Thoron and singed everything in range with lightning.

After a while, Lacie realized another sorcer had joined the fight, and she tensed, unsure whenever they were an enemy or not. Then, she realized the person using Aversa's Night was hitting the men from behind, and that it was actually a sorceress.

"Tharja!" She called. "What are you doing here?"

Tharja smiled at her precious tactician, whom she had been following all day. "Helping you, my darling."

"All right! Plegian Attack Guard is complete!" Lacie whooped.

After a few more fun, shriek filled moments of explosions and dark magic, the cobblestoned path was cracked with holes, smoke filled the air and the ground was black with soot. Rubble lay around corners, and unconscious men laid in the middle of it all.

"We might have gotten carried away," Lacie said, surveying the carnage. "Chrom's going to kill is."

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," Tharja said darkly. "In fact-"

"No, we are not killing him," Lacie interjected.

Henry just stood there, happily staring at the blood pooling around the men.

"Well, truce to never mention this to anyone?" Lacie said.

"Truce," the others agreed.

"B-b-but," Olivia protested. "Isn't this wrong? We attacked the men without reason..."

She faltered at Tharja's glare. "So? Any good person always ruthlessly takes down and beats up his enemy to near death."

Lacie sighed. "Compromise. Don't mention this to Chrom, and we take them to get treated. By Libra. And her axe. Kidding."

"Libra's a boy," Olivia timidly reminded her.

"Have you seen her face?" Lacie said incredously.

"Yes..."

"Then you can't disagree with me."

"..."

"Anyways," Lacie said. "Let's report this. Who knows what could happen to these poor, hard working peasants if we don't get them help on time. WHOEVER COULD HAVE DONE SUCH A THING?"

"It looks they have to get treated...again!" Henry said.

"Ooooo!" Lacie yelled.

Finally, the quartet managed to get Libra and Maribelle to come examine the peasants.

"Disgusting. One should expect such a slovenly state from most peasants," Maribelle sniffed, noting Hugh's red face.

"Oh, the poor saps," Lacie agreed. "I wonder whatever could have happened. I hope they got better soon."

She turned to Henry, whispering, "Not," and they both giggled silently with each other.

"Maribelle, if you expect to help fight for these very people, the least you can do is not make unfounded assumptions," Libra chimed, holding his staff over a bruised man so soft blue light fell over him.

"I thought Maribelle was suppose to be good with healing magic...because she just got treated," Henry whispered.

"Too many treated puns," Lacie mumbled back. "Still pretty good, though."

"How on earth did they get these injuries?" Libra wondered, glancing at the soot and smoke, the burn marks on the men, and the evidence of dark magic that cracked the ground. He then glanced at Lacie's Thoron, and Tharja's and Henry's dark tomes, and realized it was better not to question it.

"Let's get them to the inn," Libra said, after most of the injuries were healed. "You guys can head back first to get Chrom and some others."

"Okay," Lacie said, nodding vigorously. "I do hope the poor, poor, poor men will be alright."

She and Henry snickered about it the whole way back as Olivia tried to make conversation with an annoyed Tharja, who only tolerated her because Lacie enjoyed her presence. And she still was still a rival to Lacie's affections, but annoyingly, someone else seemed to be winning the race. Not for long, though.

"Maribelle," Libra said, crouching next to a man, watching his words form white, smoky clouds. "Are you upset?"

She huffed. "Why would I be?" Her tone and posture were stiff, though, and she was slightly angled away from him, standing next to a unmarred brick wall.

Silenc descended upon them.

"It's just that... You're right. I have no understanding of these people. I can't look upon them without contempt, seeing their vulgar ways and idiotic behavior." Maribelle's outburst was quick and upset, words half strangled. "I know not everyone of them is like that. I'm quite used to Vaike and even...Donny, but only because he's married to Lissa.

"I know that I'm too prideful. I know I can be a rude, rude...bastard sometimes. I know what the others think of me."

Her last few words were muffled as she buried herself in her arms.

"But...I don't know how to change."

Libra contemplated her words. He could not deny them; for she was right. But he had never thought about her in such a way. Not now, not ever.

"I think your sincerity is one of the best qualities you have," he said. "Not many nobles would want to help their more lower class neighbors, and not many would ever clearly see their own faults and want to change. You're quite brave."

"I'm not brave! Each day, I'm terrified. What's going to happen next? Who will die? Wil Lissa die? Will I die? And I am always so glad when I don't get put in battle, for it means I will survive."

"Everyone is terrified, even me. I believe it is when you push past your fears to fight that you're brave. And that is what you have always done, be it in combat or with your ambitions."

He turned to her. "Maribelle. You may not believe it, others may not think it, but I do. I think you are wonderful, beautiful and amazingly strong."

She was quiet, and shuffled her feet. Then she came over and snapped, "Well, I do believe this is the part where you hold my hand for spouting all this sappy poetry. What are you waiting for?"

He smiled and reached up to take her soft glove, feeling the warmth of her hand, and they stayed like that, not needing anything else, until Chrom, Stahl and Frederick came and she screamed, "What are you looking at?!"

_ Libra and Maribelle always seem to go great together, with their attitudes and all. I really love Maribelle and her sharp words, but I wish she had more characterization to Libra's and her's support conversation, just something slightly more that brought out more depth. Also, I can't say dark stuff, like who will die tomorrow, when everything is just silly, light fluff. Promise next chapter their will be more angst and darkness involving Olivia, Lacie and Henry. _


	3. Chapter 3- Curses of the Heart

So _I have two more weeks of school, which means I won't have too much time to write. ;-; I know, right? But then it's winter break, so Hasta la vista, hellhole. So here it is! A chapter that involves more angst! Whoa, Ricken and Nowi?! You guys are here too?!_

Chapter 3~ Curses of the Heart

"Tharja, take off this curse."

Henry stood in front of her, mouth curved into an eternally annoying smile, covered in snow. They were in the barracks, alone, where cold, drafty air blew in and frost patterned the ground. They had been stopped from progressing to Regna Ferox by a blizzard, one that howled and blew snow into the deepest corners of each tent and cart, found the hidden alcoves of the soul.

"You've been hit by one of my curses?!" Tharja said, laughing low and menacingly, closing her Lacie observation journal. Henry laughed too, for she had done it! And now he was going to kill her! Yay!

"Yuper doodles! Now I want it off."

"Never! Now which one was it? The rotting spell? The magic loss? Or, hallucinations followed by pain in the spleen followed by death?"

"Nya ha ha! Those sound so cool! But you're wrong. It's none of those."

"They are fantastical curses, aren't they?" She agreed. "Especially when I use them against you."

He had to agree with her on that one, though he normally didn't like ouchies. But this particular curse only made him feel...tingly. "See, it's the one where I feel like I'm being pounded in the spleen, while on a superfast Pegasus, and all my crow friends are trapped inside my stomach, making me feel warm, but tickle-ly because I want to laugh a lot. And I'm always searching for Lacie, and I want to talk to her, and joke with her, and decapitate Risen with her."

Tharja twisted her cape in her fingers. She didn't like winter or the cold, growing up in sweltering Plegia, but Lacie loved it, just like she enjoyed fantasty novels and snuggling in a blanket with Gaius's secret choclate stash. Her scowl intensified. What else did she love? And had she realized it yet?

Then she realized Henry was waiting for an answer. Why did she have to give that stupid, smiley dolt anything? He would only take Lacie away and make it so she couldn't stalk her anymore!

"You idiot! That's not a curse!" With that she stormed out of the tent, journal clasped under her cape and close to her heart.

Henry blinked. If it wasn't a curse, what was it? Maybe Ricken would know! Humming happily, he skipped outside, patterned against the dark skies, with snow that went up to his knees, slipping on ice and laughing as he did so as he became soaked through, cape clinging to his legs. It might freeze there! He though happily.

Finally, he stopped at Ricken's tent, where low, urgent voices and glimmering candle light flew out into the cold, only to be washed away and torn apart by the howling of the wind.

"Heya!" He cried, bouncing in. Ricken and Nowi looked up, startled, and Nowi hid something behind her back. The tent was warm, and Ricken had thrown pillows everywhere.

"Hi, Henry!" She said happily, standing up and inching towards the tent entrance, keeping her back hidden from Henry's view. "I have to go now. Uh, Sumia, no, Panne, that's it, Panne is calling me!"

She fled into the snow, but not before he caught something glimmering in her hands.

Ricken sighed, loudly, and stood. "Hey Henry. What do you want? And you're...wet." He enunciated each word, clearly trying to catch his attention and make him forget Nowi.

"Well, I need your help with a curse. Except it isn't a curse? It has to do with Lacie." He shrugged. "I only know Tharja won't take it off."

Ricken was silent. He wondered what in Ylisse Henry was talking about.

"Describe it."

Henry told Ricken the same thing he said to Tharja, and Ricken burst into startled laughs. How dense were his friends? Henry laughed too.

"Nya ha ha! I know it sounds silly and weird, but it's true. Now, we just need to figure out what exactly Tharja did to me."

Ricken shook his head. "Henry, this is not a curse. You, well, how can I explain it? It sounds as if you like Lacie."

"Of course I do! She's got a real humorous bone, that one."

Ricken shook his head. Henry didn't get it. Maybe it was better for him to realize in his own time. He felt proud, though, for being able to see through his friends for once. It made him feel...empathetic. Grown-up.

But then... "Is it the same way you like Nowi?" With that, all of Ricken's visions of adulthood crashed and shattered.

"W-w-what are you saying?!" He yelped. "No, I do not. O-obviously! S-s-she's too girly! And d-dense!"

"Well she is older than you by a thousand years or something," Henry cackled.

Ricken blushed a pretty apple red, and felt his face burning.

"D-don't you have some sort of life lesson with Olivia or something? Go find her! GO!" He yelled, pushing Henry out of his tent.

"I do, in fact! Thanks for reminding me!" He called cheerfully.

Ricken just stood there, shaking, when Nowi came threw the tent entrance, batting at the flaps so hard they almost ripped, letting in a blast of snow. Her face was drawn into an angry frown. "Oh, I'm dense? I'm TOO GIRLY?!" She shrieked.

"Y-you heard that?!" He said, panicked. "Nowi, I-I didn't mean it like that!"

Tears glimmered in her eyes, like this was a cheesy fan fiction. "...You don't like me?" She said quietly, tugging on her green hair.

He rushed forward, about to comfort her, deny the dumb things he didn't really think, when she took out her Dragonstone and screamed, "I HATE YOU TOO!"

"Nowi, no!"

It was too late. She transformed with a swirl of rainbow light and opening rosebuds, petals drifting around her green luminescent dragon form. He stared, awestruck. He had always found her dragon form to be amazing.

But then she set fire to his tent.

Henry looked back to hear faint screams and see smoke drifting up in the distance. "Wow! That's so awesome!"

It was too bad Olivia practiced her dances so far from everyone else. If she was closer, they would be able to see the panic and fire up front. Hex, there'd probably be blood too!

Turning back, he countinued on until he reached the dark, abadoned theater. It had once been a grand place, with gorgeous and eleaborate decorations and people from all over had came to see the lively shows held there, at least according to Olivia. But now, the gold and red paint was peeling, the walls were half caved in, and mold and fungus grew rampant. Inside, it was dark and murky, snow having busted in and covered most of the outer halls and rooms.

But in the very heart of it, it was safe and warm, lamps lit and remnants of its former glory more obvious in the faded murals and rusted chalienders, with the large, echoing stage and the plush, ripped open, velvet seats.

And that was where Olivia was, dancing and twirling, acting as if there was no gravity left to hold her down, as she delicately looped and jumped with ribbons trailing behind her, when she finally bent her head, bowed and hugged her hands close to her chest, eyes closed with a gentle smile on her lips and sweat beading her forehead.

"Hey! That was pretty good." Henry clapped, the sound echoing in the empty theater. "I don't get it, though, you crazy lady. Why do you think your dancing is bad?"

She screamed. "He-He-Henry?!"

"Yup, that's my name," he said, nodding. "Seriously though, your dancing is prett-eh awesome."

"How do you know I was here?!" Her voice became more timid now, shrinking in upon itself, face redding more than Ricken's.

He shot her an amused look, or as much as one could look amused when one always had one's eyes closed. His eyes crinkled at the corners , though. "Well, everyone knows that whenever we go on missions from Ferox and back, you practice here."

"T-they do."

"Yup."

"Everyone. Knows."

"Well, yeah."

She let out a high pitch squeal of embarrassment. "Oh dear Gods. H-how long? When did they learn? Has anyone seen me practicing? Oh Gods, oh Gods."

She whipped around to face Henry. "Y-you watched me practice today!"

"Only for a few minutes."

"A fe-few!" Her words became mangled, her voice low. She truly was blushing from the tip of her toes to the roots of her rose colored hair.

"Anyways, I came here for my daily practice on learning emotions."

She squeaked. "B-b-but..." She looked at his soaked clothes hugging his body, and the way stray snow was still melting in his hair. She sighed, a soft, unoticable sound.

"C-come here. You must be freezing."

"Nah, I'm not. But hey, doesn't Nah sound like a good name for a kid?" He cackled.

She shook her head in exasperation. "J-just come here. Y-you look cold. You can borrow...my towel."

He shrugged. She disappeared behind thick, dusty red curtains, before hopping off the stage and handing him a plush pink towel. He promptly dried himself off, rubbing his hair, and handed it back.

"Y-you're unb-believable," she stuttered, getting up to palce it back. "Lesson number four in emotions: it's okay to bother others with your troubles. M-more often than not, they want to help you."

"I'll take that in mind."

"S-so you remember what to do when you're sad or in pain?" She jumped down from the stage.

"Yup!" And then he grinned, showing off his teeth.

"..."

A crack suddenly echoed through the room. Olivia froze. Then, a long, unearthly shriek split through the room, quivering and high pitched. It faded away, and Olivia sagged with relief- only for it to be replaced by mutliple hisses, responding to the call.

"Risen!" She muttered fearfully. "Henry, run!"

"What? Why should we run from a perfectly good battle?"

"I didn't bring my sword!"

"Well, I'm sure I have Nosferatu here-" he checked his belt. "Oopsie. Didn't bring it."

His face split into a larger grin. "Guess we have to run now!"

"Eep!" She said, and scrambled up the stage, beckoning him to follow. "Hurry!"

He heaved himself up, and she grabbed his hand to pull him the rest of the way, and they disappeared behind the curtains, past a wooden door, which she shut and locked by slamming a bar across it.

"It won't hold forever!" She said, panicking, running down a dark, wet smelling hall as moans echoed behind them. "We need to warn Chrom and the others! W-w-we have to hurry! They'll be caught unaware!"

"Well, there was a problem with a fire, so there should be some people still out," he said.

She turned to stare at him. "What? I-in this snow storm?"

"It cawsed quite a blaze of trouble!"

"Well, there should be an exit at the end of this-we'll have to make a run for it," she panted. The howls of the storm outside was getting louder, and banging sounds carried down the hall.

"There it is! It's quite doorable to survive this long and still be intact!"

"We're running for our l-lives and you're still making bad puns?!"

"Forever, crazy lady!"

"Stop," she heaved. She jiggled the door handle, but it was stuck. She slammed against the door, as the Risen sounds rose and fell in intensity.

"Let me," Henry said. He smacked a hand against the door, and a spark of dark magic blasted it apart, leaving smoke and splintered pieces sticking up like spikes in the snow.

The snow had piled up to his thighs now, and Olivia looked bleak as she surveyed the howling storm outside, blurring everything with pristine white. They could still make out a colorful blob that was camp, but it looked so far.

But now was not the time to notice how hopeless it all was. They had a chance to make it. A small one, sure, but it still existed. Risen moans were closer than ever, and when she turned, she say glowing eyes peering at her from the darkness.

"Hurry!"

They trudged through the snow, stumbling and falling, getting chilled and soaked through as the camp grew closer...steadily closer... The treck felt like forever, as snow blew at her, obscuring her vision; her fingers froze and she was constantly shivering. She felt numb, always spurred on by the fear the Risen's moans caused her. Her only consolation was the fact the Risen were slow as well.

To Olivia's relief, they had made it close to the entrance, when a flicker of foreboding shook through her. She couldn't tell what it was, but she spun around to reassure herself that everything was fine, only to turn around to see a Risen Mage aiming a spell...at Henry.

"Henry!" She screamed. He turned around, too slow, and the Risen aimed, fired, and she launched herself in front of him. She saw a warm blast of fire, which, strangely, temporarily comforted her, but then dje felt a wrenching sensation in her gut, a burn, deep and painful- she gasped, heaving, trying to ignore it, but it was hard... too hard to hold on to reality. So she let herself slip away, sparing one glance at Henry, who placed one on her arm, lifting her up, a frown on his face, eyes open and full of panic.

The last thing she heard was his guttural scream and see the swoop of dark magic surround him.

"This is a freaking second degree burn," Lissa hissed. "Caused by, I would say, Elfire."

She raised her staff over Olivia, avoiding Henry, who crouched worriedly by her side, where she laid motionless on the white bed, skin pale, ruined only by where red blisters bloomed on her stomach.

"I need a Stave," she called to Donny.

"Er, it's this on', right?" He said nervously, raising a new, pale shaft topped with a blue orb.

"Yes. You're horrible at this," she remarked, grabbing it from him.

"I can't work mah way aroun' these fance-h gizmos of yours," he complained, clutching his bucket hat and glancing at Olivia.

"At least Owain..." She paused, lifting the staff so a gentle light fell on Olivia's wound.

"Owain, our f-future chi-chi-childddd?" Donny paled. "Do-don' tell meh, you wan' ta ma-mak–"

Lissa blushed feriously. "No! Where did you- you know what? Never mind. Just get out of here!" Her last words rose into a scream.

Donny scrambled out, face red as well, into the cold winter night.

She sighed. "Geez, wh-"

"Mother!" Owain burst in, purple hair wet. "I heard your pleas of mercy! What villainous creature has upset you to induce such an anguished cry? No matter! I, Owain, who bears royal blood and the blood of heros long past-" he stopped, noticing Henry sitting still near Olivia. "Are you cheating on Father?! And is that person also the Father of Inigo?! Inigo and I do bear the same striking handsomeness...so I am truly his brother..."

"Who's Inigo?" Lissa asked, fisting her hand in her dress, face pinched into a look of utter disbelief. "And how dare you imply that I'm not being loyal to Donny! Get out! Get out or I'll erase your existence by never having you! And pleas of mercy?! When- how- why whould I ever-!"

Owain paled, chuckling nervously. "T-there, Mother, don't get upset..."

"I'm not upset. Who says I'm upset? So. Owain. Get. OUT."

"Okay! I'm sorry! And please forget I even said Inigo!"

He looked just like his father, running out into the cold night air.

"Geez. What's up with all the crazy in my family..."

She blew a strand of blond hair out of her face, looking at the motionless Henry. She finally lifted the staff, and looped it through her belt. Her fingers grazed the cluttered shelves, covered and crowded with medicinal herbs and stray staffs, searching for a pack of bandages.

Finding what she needed, she ushered Henry away with a glare. It was weird when he wasn't smiling, like now, as he gazed at Olivia with concern. "Go away. No offense, but I really don't need anyone here when I'm working. You can go tell Ricken or Lacie about this."

At the names of his two closest friends, he started, then broke out into a laugh. "Gotcha, doc. See ya later!" He jumped up and ran through the door, leaving Lissa in confusion over Henry's mental state again.

He found Ricken and Nowi in Lacie's tent, along with Chrom and the tent's owner, crowded around maps and the books he and Thatja had once helped carefully organize. They were in disordered clumps again. He wondered when Lacie would ask for his help to sort them out.

"So, Nowi, you burned down Ricken's tent in a fit of rage," Chrom said. "Because he was..."

"Being a meanie!" She yelled. "Now I'll never forgive him! Even though I helped him!"

"Nowi, I already said I'm sorry," Ricken explained. "I didn't mean it!"

"No!"

"Please?"

"No! You said you didn't like me!"

Ricken looked frustrated as he snapped, "I do so like you! I like you a whole lot!"

Nowi looked at him. Chrom looked at him. Lacie looked at him. Henry stared at him and laughed.

"Whoa, so you do like Nowi that way!" He laughed.

Everyone turned, startled, to see him wet, flushed and happy in the entry way.

Ricken blushed. "I do not! She's fussy and stubborn and too much of a crybaby!"

Then he realized what he had said. "Nowi! I didn't..."

She got up, indignation in every line of her body.

"Er, please don't burn down my tent?" Lacie asked.

Nowi huffed. "Of course not! I actually like you...because you're not a jerk like Ricken!" With that, she stormed out of the tent, leaving Ricken scrambling behind her.

"Wow. The love game is strong," Lacie remarked. "Henry, what are you doing here?"

His grin faded away and Chrom and Lacie looked stunned. Was he frowning? Was Henry frowning? Were the corners of his mouth actually turned downwards? Why did it hurt Lacie to see that?

"Olivia's...hurt."

That was the only thing he needed to say before Chrom scrambled up, mouth dry. "Henry, what the hell happened?"

He giggled quietly. "She was hit by Risen. We were running. In the snow. And she saved me. I carried her back here. Lissa's on the case and she has a second degree burn."

"Shit. I'm going to go check on her. Where are the Risen now?"

"I took care of them," he said. "They won't be visiting us anytime soon."

"Oh. Okay. Well, Lacie, stradegy plans, go over them. Henry, go-" Chrom flapped his arms helplessly. "Well, just, yeah."

With that, Chrom left the tent, and Henry collapsed on the floor. "She's going to die, it's she?" His voice was surprisingly calm and clear.

"She's going to be fine. How bad is the burn?" Lacie's mind raced, and she felt tense. She wanted to get up and race over to Olivia's side, right this instant. But there was a faint, strange feeling amid all the concern and worry as well. She pushed it away uneasily.

"Red. Lots of blisters. All over her stomach."

Lacie bit her lip. "Shitshitshit. Well, she should be fine. The snow should have cooled it down some...and we should give her about two to three weeks to heal... If the burns aren't that deep."

She glanced over at Henry again. "You should get some rest. It'll be a long day tomorrow."

He tilted his head, grinning back. "What about you?"

"I have to plan and make sure no one's lives are in danger," she said. "I can't just sleep. Now go back to your tent!" Tiredness underlined each word.

She turned, and Henry saw dark shadows under her eyes, which were stubborn and anxious. Candle light flickered over her, illuminating her quill pen and thickly marked papers.

"Then I want to stay here," he decided happily, and before she could protest, he flopped down and rested his head on a nearby pillow, which had fallen off her bed.

"What the hell, Henry?!" She yelled, feeling happy but exasperated. "Fine, do whatever you want."

Massaging her temples, she grumbled and turned back to her planning, thoughts of Olivia always darting through her mind.

"Have this," she called to Henry, without turning, and threw her heavy purple coat at him. She heard an oof as it landed on his stomach.

A few minutes later something sailed over and blocked her vison. "Wha-" she fumbled and slid it off to learn that it was his cape, purple and slightly soggy.

"Have that," he cackled.

She slid it around her shoulders, and realized it smelled faintly of him, along with moldy wood, snow and old books.

Blushing without quite knowing why, she jotted a few more notes down, as the wax dripped lower and lower, the wind howled, and gradually gentle snores filled the tent.

But still, a strange, persistent feeling nagged at her. What was it? When she found herself stealing a look at Henry, she realized, with a sickening jolt, what it was.

She was jealous of poor, hurt Olivia because Henry had frowned, looked worried, for her. Of all the times she had been bloodied and bruised, the only thing he had done was remark on how well blood looked with her, and she had laughed along. She was jealous. She wanted to believe it was alright, she would get over it, but still, somewhere deep inside, it felt like a horrible betrayal to her friend.

And that begged the question of why. Why was she jealous? The answer was so simple, so shockingly simple, that she refused to believe the weird feelings she kept getting when she looked at Henry were so easy to pinpoint. But she knew it was true. There was no other explaination.

She was in love with him.

_ That was longer then I expected. Consider it an early Christmas present. It's too much fun to write this, so I'll have to take a several day break. Well, what do you guys think? Nowi and Ricken are so cute! But Henry and Lacie! What's up with them? Lacie's showing her inner hormonal teenager. Expect Panne and Yarne to be next chapter's cameo (uh, participants, I guess?) But whose his father?! *Le gasp*._

_...Er, any suggestions on who appears after Panne and Yarne?_


	4. Chapter Zero point Five

Hey guys. I'm sorry but I'm not going to continue Vivid Dreams. As much as I love it, I feel like it's lacking in several areas and that I can't go back and fill it up now. It's too late. I'm going to work on it again someday- simply because Henry is just too freaking amazing to pass up on writing about. I'll use some of the same ideas that are in Vivid but hopefully it'll be better. This is an excerpt from Chapter Four's draft.

What was Nowi hiding? Who's Yarne's Father? What's Lacie ever going to do with her new found feelings? Lots of questions, and only one chapter to answer them all! Also, guest appearance!

Miriel: Under the forcible recomomadation from the author, I have been delegated to speak to the illustrious readers who are currently viewing, er, what's this piece of literature called?

Kellam: Vivid Dreams.

Miriel: I offer the utmost and sincere gratitude, my kind spouse.

Kellam: What?

Laurent: In common folk terms, I do believe mother meant to convey her genuine and well meaning happiness that you gave her the apprioprate response.

Kellam:...

Laurent: Father cannot understand the astute and brilliant minds we share: I believe, then, that the best conclusion to draw from this short piece full of humorous value, is to now convey the genuine literature.

Miriel: Fascinating. I must agree with that precise analysis.

Kellam: I sort of understood that last part! ...Hello? Is anyone listening?

Chapter 4~ Little Pieces

She stayed up the whole night, wasting several candles in the process as the storm raged outside, but had successfully come with stradegies and back up plans for very possible scenario her tired brain could run through. In a way, it was also a punishment for feeling such a horrible thing towards Olivia, to work hard, to push herself, to do more for everyone. Chrom had eventually come back, cold and shivering, saying the snow had piled up so much it had blocked the entrance to the medical tent.

"Lacie, what have you been doing?" He asked, eyebrows raised at the enormous stacks of papers littered everywhere.

"Making stradegies!" She grunted, too tired to really care. Henry's cape burned on her back, and she drew it tighter around her. Chrom followed the movement, and then glanced at her coat that Henry was snuggled against, asleep on the floor.

"Er..."

"We have not been doing anything weird in my tent!" She snapped, as Chrom blushed. "I have been making so many freaking stradegies, I even have one where Libra and Cynthia are locked in a broom closet with only a pair of lettuce heads as defense!"

"Oh-kay," Chrom said. "You really need to go to bed."

"No!" She was sounding more and more like a petulant child. "I still need to work through my current one. It involves Sumia's pies, Gregor and a cat."

After a few more tense moments, Chrom disappeared and came back with a snow covered rhubarb pie and a couple of carrots. The pie was still warm on the inside, though, filled with the clumsy love only Sumia had.

Henry slept through it all, and woke up the next morning, energy and creepy meter full, and rushed out to see how Olivia was doing before he realized Lacie's coat was still tucked around him.

Lacie felt a pang in her heart, seeing him get up and not even stop to say hello, just rush straight towards Olivia. Then, she yelled at herself in her mind, demanding her hormones get back under the rock they had been previously hiding under.

"The rumors will spread like wildfire," Chrom noted, seeing Henry's cape still grasped in her hands like a precious treasure. "Are you sure nothing happened while I was gone?"

Chrom wasn't the sharpest sword in the inventory, but even he could see the obvious chemistry between the two. He had to rethink his life when Lacie threw him a withering glare, thumping the table with a heavy fist.


End file.
